Slayer has a message for fans ahead of Jeff’s memorial service.

With the extremist fundamentalist religious group Westboro Baptist Church threatening to picket today’s (May 23rd) celebration of the life of Slayer guitarist Jeff Hanneman; the Slayer camp themselves have urged fans to ignore them. A posting made on Slayer‘s Facebook earlier today reads:

“MESSAGE TO FANS: Want to really piss off the Westboro Baptist Church at Jeff’s Memorial Celebration? Do exactly what Slayer members and family are going to do – totally ignore them. They don’t exist. And then come inside and celebrate Jeff’s life with us.”

The aforementioned celebration of Hanneman‘s life will be held at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, CA on May 23rd (today). It is open to the public on a first come first serve basis. Hanneman passed away earlier this month at the age of 49. His official cause of death was listed as ‘alcohol related cirrhosis.’

Meanwhile, the Westboro Baptist Church‘s latest ‘news release‘ says Slash, Black Sabbath‘s Geezer Butler and Dave Mustaine of ‘Megadeath‘ [sic] should have called for “Slayer fans & the world in general to repent lest they join Jeff Hanneman in hell!”

The same piece later goes on to state that Hanneman was “finally slain May 02nd, 2013″ and that he was “literally pickled in sin.”